The background information discussed below is presented to better illustrate the novelty and usefulness of the present invention. This background information is not admitted prior art.
Oil and gas well drilling operations typically use a plurality of connected, jointed drill pipes with a drill bit attached at one end. Drill pipe, drillpipe or drillstem comes in a variety of sizes, strengths, and weights but are typically 30 to 33 feet in length. Drill pipe is comprised of tubular steel conduit fitted with special threaded ends called tool joints. These threaded ends may be externally or internally threaded. Similarly, tubular members such as drill casing also have internally and externally threaded ends. Both types of threaded ends must be protected from damage, deformations, and soiling.
During oil and gas well drilling operations, tubular members are often exposed to rough manipulation and storage conditions. Tubular members are often stored in wet and dirty conditions. Tubular members are usually manipulated using hydraulic pipe moving apparatus, where a carriage or skate imparts significant forces onto a tubular member's threaded end, so as to move that tubular member along a trough to a desired location.
Conventional thread protectors normally comprise a clamp-on mechanism or a lock-pin mechanism to secure the thread protector onto the tubular member's threaded end. These clamp-on and lock-pin mechanisms employ stainless steel or other metallic springs, clamps and pins. While convenient in terms of securing or removing a thread protector onto or off of a threaded end, the metallic and steel components of these conventional mechanisms are often damaged during use. Such damage is usually due to exposure to the elements and/or due to the forces and vibrations from the carriage or skate of a hydraulic pipe moving apparatus.
Therefore, what is needed is a simple, cost-effective thread protector that is weather resistant, simple in design and that does not require steel or other metallic components to lock or unlock the protector onto, or off of, a threaded end.